Nelson Clark, has said the Schaibles
lost their sons because of a “spiritual lack” in their lives and
insisted they would not seek medical care even if another child appeared
near death.

Cult of Christianity

Theologically First Century Gospel Church is a cult of Christianity. Sociologically, the church has cult-like elements as well.1
Indeed former members of the church refer to the church as a cult,
pointing out that aside from not being allowed to seek out medical care
and take medicines, followers also do not own property, purchase
insurance, or go to college.

Brainwashed

Ex-member Eric Blake refers to the church’s teachings as brainwashing.
“Just like any false teaching or any other cult, they cut you off from the outside world,” he explains.
Blake told the Philadelphia Inquirer
that several of his family members in the church died because they
refused to seek medical treatment for things such as measles. He noted
that many of his other family members have since left the church.
Another former member, referred to only as Stephanie, recounts how
difficult it was to turn her back on the church’s teachings after having
been a member for 18 years.

[W]hat really dashed her beliefs, she
said, is when her father died of an undiagnosed form of cancer and her
mother suffered a fatal heart attack a month later.
“I was doing exactly what the church said. I repented of my sins,
[got] rid of my worldly possessions, and when your loved one dies,
there’s such a feeling of deception,” she said. “It makes you lose your
trust in people and your trust in churches. The more I questioned
things, the more [they] contradicted themselves.”

Murder, involuntary manslaughter, child endangerment and conspiracy

Meanwhile the Schaibles, who are being held without bail, each face a
possible sentence of 40 years in prison if convicted of third-degree
murder and 10 years for involuntary manslaughter.
They also face five to ten years in prison for violating the terms of their 10-year probation after they were convicted, in December 2010, of involuntary manslaughter and child endangerment in the pneumonia death of their 2-year-old son, Kent.
On July 3 they will be formally arraigned on murder, involuntary manslaughter, child endangerment and conspiracy charges.
Their seven other children have been placed in foster care.
Last month First Century Gospel Church pastor Nelson Clark told The Inquirer the fact the the city placed the Schaibles’ children in foster care — in the home of non-believers — worries him.

To prevent that from happening again, Clark said, he is trying to reconcile the demands of the state with their own beliefs.
He said church teachings would allow a child welfare agency to
arrange medical visits. This way, he explained, someone else could
initiate the calls to a doctor.

http://www.religionnewsblog.com/
————————————————-
New information reveals more and more Americans are turning to exorcism to deal with their demons.

Father Gary Thomas is the official exorcist for the Diocese of San Jose.

Under order of Pope John Paul II, he traveled to Rome
in 2005 to train in the Vatican-certified seminary on how to perform an
exorcism.

Father Thomas was the inspiration for Anthony Hopkins’ character in the 2011 movie “The Rite.”

“Since the movie came out the number of exorcists has quadrupled,” Father Thomas said.

He works with a team and is accompanied by three
medical professionals during the procedure, which he says does not
happen in one day. He estimates 90-percent of the cases he sees are just
mental health issues.

No major U.S. medical organization recognizes
exorcism. It doesn’t even get one mention.Father Thomas says the ritual
doesn’t need a debate or acknowledgement from anyone, except those who
need it.

“If people are coming and they’re suffering from what
they perceive to be demonic and even though it may not be, we’re still
there to help support them however we can,” Father Thomas said.

Two students and their rabbi/attorney/father, Barry Silver, have
filed a lawsuit against their school district, claiming that it fails to teach evolution and so-called truths about religions. Yes, in Florida.

What do you do when you believe the U.S. government interferes in your religion? Why, you set sail — literally — in search of a better place.
Hannah Gastonguay, 26, says that she, her husband Sean, 30, along
with his father, Mike, and daughters, 3-year-old Ardith and baby Rahab
sailed off last May after they had “decided to take a leap of faith and see where God led us.”
Back to the States, it appears.
They aimed for the tiny island nation of Kiribati — about halfway between Hawaii and Australia — but, in Hannah’s words, ended up in the “twilight zone.” Lacking proper navigational skills, they didn’t touch land for 3 months before they were eventually rescued.
According to the Associated Press, though they don’t attend a church,

Hannah Gastonguay said her family was fed up with government control in the U.S. As Christians they don’t believe in “abortion, homosexuality, in the state-controlled church,” she said.
U.S. “churches aren’t their own,” Gastonguay said, suggesting that government regulation interfered with religious independence.
Among other differences, she said they had a problem with being “forced to pay these taxes that pay for abortions we don’t agree with.”

In recent years, the program has
brought hundreds of Latin Americans to Iran for intensive
Spanish-language instruction in Iranian religion and culture, much of it
supervised by a man who is wanted internationally on terrorism charges, according to U.S. officials and experts.

Meanwhile, scholars at EMU debate whether Islam is a religion of peace.
Kind of depends on which flavor of Islam we’re talking about. TheReligionOfPeace.com keeps track of the decidely unpeaceful variety.
http://www.religionnewsblog.com/